The Development of Sociology

By Jon K. Loessin

Isidore Auguste Marie François Xavier Comte(1798-1857)French scholarProdigy/GeniusEnlightenment/ModernityUtopian SocialistAND, Eccentric

Affected by ConflictsRaised in the aftermath of the French Revolution

(1789)Wealthy, elitist upbringingWitnessed poverty, disease, destruction, social disorderConcluded that “Order should be restored…” in

society…and should be a universal right of all individuals

Parents were staunch royalist Catholics but sent Auguste to study at a polytechnic universityRecognized religion and science as old natural enemiesIt was a seemingly irresolvable conflict that was the

root cause of revolution and social upheavalConcluded this must be resolved to bring about order,

peace and unity in the world

Genius and Megalomania“There is a fine line between genius and

insanity.” Comte, Nietzsche, and many others throughout history are examples

Comte took it upon himself to solve the perpetual conflict between religion and science…and came to believe he was the ONLY person smart enough to accomplish the feat. He formulated a theory to demonstrate where society had been and where it was going—The Law of Human Progress.

Comte’s Law of Human ProgressOften called the “stages of human knowledge”Each stage describes how humans throughout

existence, explain the causes of phenomenaThere are two competing modes of explanation—

the RELIGIOUS (or THEOLOGICAL) and the SCIENTIFIC (or the POSITIVE)

EACH of these stages contain THREE SUBSTAGES that serve to explain social evolution and the future

Theological SubstagesThe three substages of the THEOLOGICAL

are:

A. Fetishism—objects, icons, idols, etc. as causationattributing causes of phenomena to inanimate

objects or the will of natureB. Polytheism—multiple gods as causation

Phenomena are the result of many different deitiesC. Monotheism—a singular deity as causation

i.e. God wills all things to happen

Positive SubstagesThe three substages of the POSITIVE are:

A. Metaphysical—a major transitional phaseEarthly cause/effect relationships, not God, cause

phenomena, but may be unknown at present.B. Polyscientific (Comte’s present world)

Multiple sciences explain phenomena within their realm and foster the expansion of more sciences

C. MonoscientificFuture unity of all sciences into one

SUPERSCIENCE—the science of all the sciences= SOCIOLOGY

The “New” ReligionThus, for Comte, the evolution of religion through

the stages of theology and later the positive were all part of the same process where only the labels changed and beliefs were refined. Since science explained phenomena once reserved exclusively for theology, science became the “new and improved” religion…

God was replaced as a being to worship by science, which should now be worshipped…and the science of society he called SOCIOLOGY was to be the religion of modern humanity—humanity worshipping itself

“Order and Progress” became the Positivists’ motto

Ready for the bizarre?Three brief stories all ending with great irony:Comte founded a “religious” cult with the religion being

SOCIOLOGY—and lost his followers! (see Comte’s Positive Philosophy (1830) and Positive Politics (1854)

Comte became a scholarly pariah (and profoundly depressed) and died of cancer in 1857 long before sociology became a mainstream academic science—and witnessing himself being credited with the title, “the Father of Sociology” (see Harriet Martineau, Herbert Spencer, and Charles Darwin)

Comte may not have even been “the Father of Sociology” (see Giambattista Vico) but instead, perhaps a plagiarist!

The AftermathWhile Comte never saw his promise and

purpose of sociology fulfilled, his creation blossomed into an academic study that was multi-disciplinary and an important tool for understanding and interpreting the world.

SOCIOLOGY--The scientific study of human groups and social organization including the interrelationships in and between the various elements of society

FIN